Why I Love Working in Health Care in North Dakota

iStock.com/Sakorn Sukkasemsakorn

North Dakota offers fertile ground for health care professionals to grow their careers. Ahead, meet Dr. Tyrone Berentson and nurse Carrie Giesler, both North Dakota natives who appreciate the ample opportunities they have found in the state to build their skills and serve their communities.

Dr. Berentson grew up on a family farm in Minot about 90 minutes from where he now serves as a family medicine physician with SMP Health-St. Andrew’s in Bottineau. He completed his education and training – undergraduate degree, medical school, residency and a fellowship in sports medicine – at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks.

“I’ve never lived outside of North Dakota,” he says. “I’ve traveled plenty. I’ve been to 46 states, so I’ve experienced the rest of the country, but I always get pulled back to North Dakota.”

What do you love about North Dakota?

The state does a very good job of enticing medical providers to practice here, partly through state loan repayment programs, where in exchange for a five-year agreement to work in rural North Dakota, I will come out loan free. While larger urban hospital centers might offer sign-on bonuses to pay off my loans, I wanted to be rural, and this state program helped offset those concerns and let me stay where my heart is. 

I also like that when I go down the street, I know the majority of people either as patients or family members of patients, and I have a more intertwined connection with the community around me. And as a new father, I like the idea of raising my kids in a small community.

What does community connection mean for your practice?

The multigenerational care that I’m able to provide is really a unique thing. At one point I was seeing four generations of the same family. It adds another layer of feeling like you’re impacting peoples’ lives. Word of mouth goes a long way. For instance, I could see an 18-year-old with a sprained knee from a basketball game, and then his grandma might come in because she has a shoulder that’s bothering her.

What do you tell other health care professionals about working in North Dakota?

North Dakota has opportunities for health care professionals to provide much-needed services, which generally means good compensation. By providing services that aren’t as common in rural communities, you’re sparing people a two-hour drive in each direction. You’re keeping them in the community, and that’s something they are very grateful for. That’s a very satisfying part of the job.

“Becoming a nurse is one of the most important decisions I’ve made in my life,” says Carrie Giesler, who works as a preoperative nurse in the surgery center at Jamestown Regional Medical Center, which is located between Fargo and Bismarck. Giesler has lived in about a 30-mile radius of her hometown in Kulm, North Dakota, her whole life and has no desire to leave.

How did your health care career evolve in North Dakota?

I was a young stay-at-home mom and farm wife when my father was diagnosed with cancer and later placed in hospice. Watching the nurses care for him, I felt a calling in my heart to be a nurse. There were no online nursing programs at the time, so I started my journey as a CNA with hospice in 2005. 

From there, I continued to work as a CNA at a local clinic for several years before enrolling in an online program to become an LPN in 2011. During that time, I also took an EMT class and served on the area ambulance crew. As I gained knowledge and work experience, I realized I couldn’t stop at the LPN level. I enrolled in an LPN-to-BSN program. Throughout my journey, I had incredible mentors who encouraged me and helped me realize I was smarter and more capable than I ever thought.

During my clinical preceptorship in the emergency room at Jamestown Regional Medical Center, I was impressed by the technology, advancements and strong reputation of the hospital. In 2017, I landed my first job as a registered nurse in the hospital’s med-surg department before transitioning to the surgery center in 2019, where I continue to work as a perioperative nurse today.

What’s it like to become a nurse later in life? 

Because of my age, people assumed I had 20 years of experience as a nurse. Especially at the beginning, I had to remind the younger nurses that they had been nurses longer than I had. I am grateful to be working alongside and learning from younger nurses. My life experience allows me to offer practical advice. I have helped other CNAs realize that they are capable of becoming nurses. There are alternatives to the traditional path right after high school, and with time, hard work and perseverance, it is possible.

What’s special about being a nurse in your community?

Working in rural health care in North Dakota allows me to care for community members and friends. Most people in North Dakota are family-oriented, hardworking and deeply connected to the land through agriculture. They come from a place that is close to my heart. Jamestown Regional Medical Center fosters a close-knit health care team, allowing nurses to form meaningful connections with both patients and colleagues. We have chosen to dedicate ourselves to the care of others by providing compassion, comfort and healing to those who need us most.

This article was sponsored by the North Dakota Department of Commerce.